


Horsing Around

by ConsequentialGamer



Category: Assassin's Creed - All Media Types
Genre: Cute, Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-17
Updated: 2020-04-17
Packaged: 2021-03-01 21:47:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,115
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23704120
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ConsequentialGamer/pseuds/ConsequentialGamer
Summary: Not being around horses had definitely given Leonardo a healthy fear of them. He had a couple bodies, gifted to him for research, that had been trampled or kicked by upset horses and he had no interest in becoming one of them. But with Ezio’s arms comfortably around his waist, guiding the horse down the road expertly even as they moved at a quick pace, he wasn’t afraid.
Relationships: Ezio Auditore da Firenze/Leonardo da Vinci
Comments: 2
Kudos: 79





	Horsing Around

**Author's Note:**

> The title used to make sense and now it doesn't so please just roll with me, I couldn't come up with anything better

Three quick knocks, and the response was almost immediate. 

Leonardo shouted something from inside the workshop, the words drowned out by a crash that Ezio could only guess at. He didn’t have to wonder long; the door flew open into the shop and Leonardo stood with a wide grin. “Ezio! Come in, come in.  _ Come stai? _ ”

“ _ Bene, grazie. _ ” Ezio responded with a chuckle and stepped past the older man to survey the shop. The source of the crash had certainly been the pile of buckets now scattered on the floor. As he bent down to pick them up, Ezio couldn’t help but remember asking Leonardo if he could help clean them up last time he was there. 

“Ah, you don’t have to do that,” Leonardo cut in quickly, moving the stack from one precarious spot to another. Ezio noted then that his hat was stuffed in the waistband of his pants and his hair had a tangle in the back where he could perfectly picture the inventor, leaning over some of his scattered notes, rubbing at the back of his head in frustration as he tried to figure out just  _ how  _ to make this work...the image was so vivid, something Ezio had seen countless times before, and he was only pulled out of it by Leonardo speaking again. “Did you need something? Another codex page, perhaps?”

“I can’t come visit a friend?” Ezio smiled, pulling his hood back to properly meet Leonardo’s eyes. “No, I’m here to do something for you.”

Leonardo raised an eyebrow, a slight smile playing at his lips. “Something for me? That’d be a first,” he teased, making Ezio roll his eyes.  
“You work too hard, _amico_. You deserve a break.” He swung the bag on his shoulder forward so it rested on the table between them both. “We can head out of the city, to the vineyards. I know a few nice spots out there where the guards don’t patrol.” He smiled again, patting the heavy cloth bag. “ _Per favore?_ ”

Leonardo laughed slightly, shaking his head. “You didn’t have to beg, Ezio…” He looked around the shop for a moment before breaking into a smile. “Alright, why not? This can wait a day. You better have me home by sundown,” he joked, stepping closer to Ezio and pulling the other man’s hood up onto his head.

“Of course. You know I won’t let anything happen to you.” He pinched the hat from Leonardo’s waistband and dropped it on his head, grinning at his bewildered expression.  
“Your hands make me nervous. They’re too quick.” Leonardo shook his head, but nothing could dampen the smile on his lips.

“ _ Grazie.  _ I’ve been practicing.” Ezio grinned and led the way out of the crowded workshop. Not many people were milling about outside; it was nearing midday and the sun was at its hottest. It was a perfect time for Ezio to move about the city; guards paid the pair no mind, as most of them didn’t even have the will to carry their heavy weapons at their posts in the heat. In no time at all, they’d reached the gates south of the city and Leonardo began to walk down the road that led to the countryside. Ezio, however, stopped. 

“Where do you think you’re going?” He called, and Leonardo turned to see Ezio holding the reins of two large chestnut horses. “I rented some transportation. I know it’s not far but...the afternoon will be longer if we ride.” The glint in his eyes was almost enough to make Leonardo leap right onto the back of one of the stallions...almost.

“Ezio…” He laughed slightly, stepping back as the horses loomed closer. “Ezio,  _ amico,  _ I have no idea how to ride. I wasn’t exactly raised as you were.” He risked taking an eye off the horses to meet Ezio’s, who looked suitably shocked.

“Oh...oh! Leonardo, I didn’t realize…” He looked at the horses and bit his lip, sending a quick glance back at the man that owned them. “Maybe...ah, a cart would be too much trouble just for this... _ un momento _ .” He tugged the horses back toward the city gates and Leonardo watched as Ezio spoke with the man and handed the reins back, but only of one horse. He mounted the larger horse and walked it back to his companion, holding out a hand. “Get on.”

Leonardo looked at the hand and then Ezio, as if he’d grown another head and began speaking Russian. “You...can’t be serious, Ezio…”

“Of course I am! It’s never too late to learn something. You’ve told me that yourself. And now is the perfect time for you to learn to ride.” When Leonardo still hesitated, he pushed on. “If it really bothers you, I suppose I could just hand them over and try to get my florins back. It might be difficult though…”

Leonardo sighed and grabbed his hand. “Fine. But if it tries to bite me, I’m going home and--!” He was cut off by Ezio handily pulling him up onto the horse and in a moment, they were both astride it. Ezio was pressed up against his back, crowding against him and around him in a way that was comforting and safe and frustratingly warm. Leonardo was certain he’d be red and sweaty now if he wasn’t already from the heat of the day. “Ezio!” He hissed, unable to put any malice in his tone; with the position they were in, he couldn’t think straight, let alone be mad. “This is...ridiculous. What if someone sees?”  
“Sees what?” Ezio smiled and reached around Leonardo’s waist to pick up the reins. “I’m simply teaching you how to ride a horse. Is there something wrong with that?”  
Leonardo knew that, yes, there _was_ something wrong with that in the eyes of quite a few people. But anyone that gave them a sideways glance during their journey looked away again just as quickly as Ezio casually flicked back his cape and let his sword and dagger catch the bright sun.

Leonardo had certainly driven a carriage before, but riding was something else entirely. He had no reason to really, since Firenze was too small and the streets too narrow to justify travelling around on horseback. He hadn’t grown up in money the way Ezio had and family outings to the countryside were out of the question. In fact, not being around horses had definitely given Leonardo a healthy fear of them. He had a couple bodies, gifted to him for research, that had been trampled or kicked by upset horses and he had no interest in becoming one of them. But with Ezio’s arms comfortably around his waist, guiding the horse down the road expertly even as they moved at a quick pace, he wasn’t afraid. Ezio did everything with confidence, even if he’d never done it before, and that level of sureness tended to rub off on Leonardo, especially in situations like this.

And so they rode that way out to the countryside, five miles down the road to a small copse of trees at the edge of a vineyard. The walls of San Gimignano were just visible in the distance as Ezio swung his leg over the back of the horse and stepped down. He offered a hand just as he’d done before and Leonardo took it quicker this time, grateful for the support when his foot tangled in the stirrup and nearly sent him to the ground on his face. Ezio’s other hand caught his elbow, steadying him on the ground with a laugh. Leonardo quickly shoved his face away, knocking his hood back and revealing his blinding grin. The assassin laughed again and turned to take a rope off the saddle, tying the horse up by a tree to give it space to relax.

Leonardo looked around and realized Ezio must have been planning this outing for a bit in advance. The area they were was perfectly secluded; as they’d ridden closer, he realized it wasn’t just a copse of trees but hidden between the cover was a livestock shelter that had fallen into disrepair. Two stone walls still barely stood, meeting at the corner and half collapsed anyway, but nearly everything else was open. Laid out on the ground were two woolen blankets, protecting from any stray nails or sharp rocks. They couldn’t really be seen from the main road, and no one could sneak up behind them. And as Ezio unpacked his bag of food, he spotted a large glass bottle of wine nestled between two larger stones. Even without opening it, the drink inside looked expensive. “Ezio, that must have cost you a fortune…”

Ezio tossed a smile over his shoulder, setting out a couple jars of pickled vegetables. “Oh, I’m sure it cost the Templar  _ bastardo  _ I stole it from a good amount. But, you know, finders keepers.” 

“I’m fairly certain that phrase only applies when you’re not actively stealing.” Leonardo rolled his eyes and sat down on the blanket as Ezio laughed. “Trust me,  _ amici, _ he won’t miss it.”

They tended not to talk much about Ezio’s...profession. Leonardo supported him and the Assassins’ cause wholeheartedly. Not to mention, he got his hands on some incredible pieces of information that he could use and expand on. But the actual killing and sneaking and being forced into the shadows wasn’t something he could find peace with. Ezio deserved a normal life, and he wasn’t going to have it. Leonardo could have never pictured that the young man that came into his workshop with his mother years ago would become what he was now. But Ezio never complained. He threw himself into his Assassin work like he did everything else, and Leonardo had to admire him for it. 

And to his credit, Ezio never made him feel unsafe. As they settled in to eat the food they’d carried out there, he removed his sword belt and his bracers, leaving them in reach in case he needed them. He really looked relaxed, Leonardo noted, hood pulled all the way back and smiling and laughing easily as they talked. Besides the old scar on his lip, there were a few new cuts and bruises. The remnants of a black eye, no doubt a gift from the city guard. Leonardo knew that under the robes, he was covered in infinitely more wounds, varying in size and intensity. One particularly bad one that Leonardo had tended to himself; an arrow from one of the roof archers had pierced his torso and just barely skipped along a few ribs. It had gone through his left side, back to front, and taken months to fully mend.

“Leonardo?” 

Ezio was looking at him now, waiting. He’d asked a question that the other had been too lost in thought to acknowledge. 

“ _ Mi dispiace, _ Ezio. I was...thinking.”

The Assassin laughed and sat up, reaching for the bottle of wine and pouring more for himself. “I asked how that painting was coming along. The one for Sforza’s mistress. I try to stop by when I’m in the area but I swear, she’s always there.”

Leonardo shrugged. “Paintings take time, Ezio. And she’s not always there.”

“I don’t know how he can trust you with his lady so often. Seems like you could be doing a lot more than painting in that time.” He spoke it like a challenge, waiting for Leonardo to rise and take the bait.

“Don’t play with me.” Leonardo rolled his eyes. “Women don’t distract me from my work.”

Satisfied with the answer, Ezio laid back on the blanket to look at the sky. “They don’t. I’ve noticed...But I distract you, don’t I?” 

The question was quiet and at first, Leonardo wasn’t sure it’d actually been asked. When he looked at Ezio though, the other’s cheeks were red, and not from the heat. Where he’d normally be constantly fidgeting and moving, he’d fallen still as well. Ezio was waiting, refusing to meet his eyes and trying to keep a casual calm on his features.

Leonardo smiled slightly and leaned down, pressing a kiss to the side of Ezio’s mouth. “You’re the most maddening distraction I’ve ever met.”

Almost immediately, Ezio’s hand went to the back of Leonardo’s neck, pulling him down until he lost his balance and they were laying together on the blanket. Nothing about it was graceful; buckles from Ezio’s robes dug into his side and as they met in a proper kiss, hair caught in the sweat on both of their faces. 

It was hot and sticky and uncomfortable and Leonardo couldn’t imagine anywhere else he would rather be.

**Author's Note:**

> Leonardo was painting "Lady with an Ermine" and I know that doesn't necessarily match the time line here since he finished it in 1490 but like? He really didn't paint anything (that we know about) during the entirety of AC2 so clearly he was too busy with Ezio to bother


End file.
